Showing posts with label Love of God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Love of God. Show all posts

Friday 19 April 2013

Greatest single cause of atheism





The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is
christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips
and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle.
That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.
[intro track to War of Ages album Fire from the Tomb]

Popularized by the 1995 dc Talk track “What if I stumble?
Brennan Manning

How I treat a brother or sister from day to day,
how I react to the sin-scarred wino on the street,
how I respond to interruptions from people I dislike,
how I deal with normal people in their normal confusion on a normal day may be a better indication of my reverence for life
than the antiabortion sticker on the bumper of my car.
Ragamuffin GospelBrennan Manning


In a futile attempt to erase our past, we deprive the community of our healing gift.  If we conceal our wounds out of fear and shame, our inner darkness can neither be illuminated nor become a light for others.
[Abba's Child]
Brennan Manning

 
“When I get honest, I admit I am a bundle of paradoxes.
I believe and I doubt, I hope and get discouraged,
I love and I hate, I feel bad about feeling good,
I feel guilty about not feeling guilty.
I am trusting and suspicious.
I am honest and I still play games.
Aristotle said I am a rational animal;
I say I am an angel with an incredible capacity for beer.
Brennan Manning

To live by grace means to acknowledge my whole life story, the light side and the dark.
In admitting my shadow side I learn who I am and what God’s grace means.
As Thomas Merton put it,
‘A saint is not someone who is good but who experiences the goodness of God.
Brennan Manning


The gospel of grace nullifies our adulation of televangelists, charismatic superstars, and local church heroes.
It obliterates the two-class citizenship theory operative in many American churches.
For grace proclaims the awesome truth that all is gift.
[The Ragamuffin Gospel]
Brennan Manning


We should be astonished at the goodness of God,
stunned that he should bother to call us by name, our mouths wide open at his love,
bewildered that at this very moment we are standing on holy ground.
Ragamuffin GospelBrennan Manning


Do you realize that in a profoundly human way – the God of Jesus loves you?
He loves you beyond worthiness and unworthiness;
beyond fidelity and infidelity.
He loves you in the morning sun and the evening rain without caution, regret, boundary or breaking point.
No matter what’s gone down – He can’t stop loving you!
 Brennan Manning
 



Brennan Manning
Brennan Manning (Photo credit: Jordon)
Last Friday at the age of 79 the author, friar and contemplative Richard Francis Xavier (Brennan) Manning gave his last breath.
He was the man who said Jesus loved the people around him and that his Father was willing to take them all up in His Kingdom if they wanted to come to Him.
In his book "The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled Beat-Up and Burnt Out"  Manning takes aim at those “so-called Christians who disfigure the face of God, mutilate the gospel of grace, and intimidate others through fear.” He finds it unthinkable that the church rejects those who are accepted by Jesus. Jesus loves those whom the Father loves. If Jesus accepts sinners then God accepts sinners – and He does. How can any of us enter the Kingdom except that God accepts us in our sinful state? (Romans 5:8)

Manning_sm
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Friday 12 March 2010

A love not exempting us from trials


"God's love for us is not a love that always exempts us from trials,
but rather, a love that sees us through trials."
- Anonymous

“If we open our heart for the love of God
we  get more ‘breathing space’
and more easily can we aim ourselves  to the will of God.”
 - Marcus Ampe

“The love of God is an one of the largest realities in the universe
A pillar on which the hope of the world rests.
But it is also a personal intimate matter.

God does not love races, he loves people.
He does not love masses, but people.
- A. W. Tozer

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings,
because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
perseverance, character;
and character, hope.
And hope does not disappoint us,
because God has poured out his love into our hearts …"
Romans 5:3-5

God, our maker, give that we can be formed for the  good by You.
Give us your fatherly love and lead us not in temptation
but release us of angriness and evil
and give that we can share your love with others.

Dutch version / Nederlandstalige versie > Een liefde die ons niet vrijstelt van verzoeking

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Tuesday 17 November 2009

We love because he first loved us

We love because he first loved us.




Thoughts
Phil Ware    As human beings, we like to think of ourselves as the center of our universe. We determine the greatness or validity of most deeds based on their impact upon us. We consider ourselves great adventurers, inventors, and investigators. However, in the most important quest of all, we did not act first; God did. He loved us. He loved us personally. He loved us first. Our love is a response to his grace. Our love is simply sharing with others what has been lavished upon us. We love because he loved us first.
Prayer
    Almighty God and Abba Father, over these last several days I have tried to understand your love for me and my fellow humans. I don't profess to understand your love, but I do know that you have blessed me with it in ways I could not have imagined. So please, dear Father, help me remember your great love for me when I am faced with temptation, led to doubt your love, wonder about my worthiness, or tempted to be unloving toward anyone. I want your love to be reflected in my daily life. Thanks for loving mightily. Most of all, thanks for loving first!
In Jesus' name I thank you. Amen.

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Liefhebben omdat God ons eerst lief had
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2013 update:
 
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Tuesday 27 October 2009

No person has greater love than this one who surrendered his soul in behalf of his friends


John 15:13 (33 kb)
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.



Thoughts
    Words communicate and explain. We can tell people that we love them. We can explain how precious they are to us. Actions validate and confirm. When we sacrifice our preferences for another, we show our respect and affection. When we sacrifice ourselves, our wishes, and our preferences for a friend, we give the greatest of all gifts and prove our love beyond any doubt.
Prayer
    Father, thank you for loving me enough to send Jesus as a ransom for my sins. I am
thankful that Jesus gave himself as a loving sacrifice that not only saves me, but shows me the full extent of your love. In Jesus' name I thank you. Amen.
Dutch version / Nederlandse versie > Niemand heeft zulk een grote liefde als hij die zij leven gaf voor zijn vrienden
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Monday 7 September 2009

Love been perfected with us


1 John 4:17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.



Thoughts
Phil Ware    Because of what Jesus has done for us, when we live for God lovingly, we can have confidence in the face of death and before God at judgment. Our confidence is not in our efforts, but in our Savior. His love has not only redeemed us; it has changed us. His love is not only a gift to us, but it is a gift through us. We can be confident because we know that Jesus' life is present in us until we can stand with him in the presence of our Father.
Prayer
    Holy Father, thank you for the power to love others. Thank you for the confidence your love gives me. You have done so much to save me. Thank you for your loving grace. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Dutch version > Liefde die werkelijkheid is geworden
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2013 update:
 
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